Liverpool reportedly spoke to Simo Valakari about a move to Anfield.
According to iTromso in Norway, Liverpool held surprise talks with Simo Valakari in February and March about becoming the club’s new Under-18 coach as a successor to Steven Gerrard.
The Reds ended up losing Gerrard to Rangers in May, as the Anfield legend decided to leave his post as Liverpool’s Under-18 boss in order to take up his first senior management role at Ibrox.
Liverpool spent time weighing up their options on Gerrard’s successor, but ended up going for Under-16 boss Barry Lewtas, promoting him into the role for the new season.
However, it seems that Liverpool did have another name in mind for the role long before Gerrard took the Rangers job, with an ex-Premier League midfielder allegedly being spoken to.
iTromso in Norway report that Tromso boss Simo Valakari headed to Merseyside in February and March in order to hold talks about the job, but he turned down the role ‘almost immediately’.
Valakari is understood to have decided that he wants to focus on training first-team players rather than dipping into youth coaching at this stage of his career.
The Finn, 45, had a spell in the Premier League in his playing days with Derby County, and has since stepped into management with Abo IFK, SJK and now Tromso.
Valakari would have been a left-field suggestion for Liverpool, but the allegedly knew that Gerrard would be moving on to become a manager this summer and weighed up the Finn for the job, only to be snubbed.
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